Family heirloom, then turned into a demon girl

Chapter 17 Mission: 03-5 Lost

Nero used the Yama Blade's downward slash to knock Credo's Durandal away, then stepped on the tip of Durandal's blade, finally suppressing Credo's weapon through the force of leverage. Credo did not retreat and try to draw his blade, but instead rushed forward with his shield.

Nero held his sword horizontally to block the shield strike, but was still forced back a step. Credo, having reclaimed his weapon, leaped back and swung a wave of light towards the ground, stopping Nero as he tried to pursue him.

Credo jumped back without landing, just hanging in the air and said, "Don't stop me, Nero."

Nero raised his Yama Blade, ready to launch a space-traveling slash at any moment. "I can't watch you die."

"I'm going to die?"

Credo laughed in anger. "You only encountered this last night. How can you know more about what the cult has done than I do?"

It seems that we can only drop some heavy bombs.

Nero calmed his breath and said softly, “I’m sorry, Credo.

"I know everything. It was the cult's test subjects who killed my father and mother."

"What did you say?"

Credo's breath hitched. His mind refused to comprehend the meaning of these words.

Nero did not repeat what she had just said, she knew very well that Credo had heard it clearly.

"...Who told you that? Agnus?"

Nero shook his head: "I can't tell you."

"Could it be Gloria... No, she just joined the cult, she probably doesn't know about this..."

The secret buried deep in his heart was revealed at this moment, causing Credo to fall into great confusion: "Damn it, who is it? If Ji Liye also knows——"

Nero interrupted Credo: "Jilie doesn't know, and I won't tell her."

Credo, his heart racing and his head swam, stopped muttering and looked at her. Nero continued, "But I believe she has her suspicions. That demon is unlike any demon the Order has ever recorded."

"Kredo, stop deceiving yourself. What is the purpose of the cult's sacrifices?"

"Of course... to create an ideal world without demons."

Credo's tone was no longer as decisive as it was at the beginning.

"What about the knights who underwent the rite of death? Are you saying that they should all die as well?"

Credo was silent.

He could certainly say that the knights of the Order were angels, but the power they had received was still undeniably demonic. Even if they survived the ritual of rebirth and didn't lose their minds and turn into pure demons, who could guarantee that this wouldn't happen one day in the future?
As Nero said, the only way to deal with it is—

"The Knights of the Order are not afraid of sacrifice." Credo replied after a while.

"What about the Pope?" Nero asked. "Will the Pope also sacrifice himself?"

Credo didn't reply.

No matter how much he trusted the Pope before, he couldn't help but feel resentful after what happened.

"Kredo, the Order has..."

Just as Nero was about to press on with her victory, Credo interrupted her: "Nero, stop talking."

Nero looked at him hesitantly: "You..."

"No matter how much you try to convince me, my conclusion will only be one."

He spread his wings, raised his sword, and shouted in a thunderous voice: "I will not betray the Order, but I will eradicate the evil that has spread within it. Even if the one who betrayed our faith is the Pope himself, I will definitely cut off his head. "By this sword, I swear to my god Sparta!"

After saying this, the golden glow on Credo's body became more and more dazzling, like a small sun. His gaze slowly dropped from the sky to the ground, landing on Nero. "Nero, you can't stop me. Get out of the way."

"You can't do that, Credo."

Persuasion failed again, and Nero could only grit his teeth and raise the Yama Blade: "You can't defeat the Pope, so I won't let you go like this."

"madness!"

Credo instantly appeared above Nero's head and smashed his shield into the ground: "Compared to me, your chances of winning are even worse!"

Nero did a backflip to get away from Credo's landing spot, then immediately leaped forward while stomping on the magic power in the air, swinging his sword and slashing at Credo in the air: "I am stronger than you, and the odds of victory are clearly mine!"

Credo blocked the blow with his sword, redirecting it to land behind him. After landing, he quickly stood up and took a stance, aiming at Nero, who had not yet landed. "Still being stupid! Their trap is waiting for you!"

"God will bring down wrathful punishment, and your vampires will be shocked and terrified!"

Facing Credo who was charging straight at him, Nero left a shadow under the push of magic and accelerated to the ground. The Yama Sword fell straight to the ground, blocking Credo's attack at this critical moment.

Nero held the blade that was deeply embedded in the ground. The slender Yama Blade and the tip of Credo's sword bit each other tightly, making a teeth-grinding squeaking sound, as if sparks were about to be sprayed out.

"Please, Credo, believe me, I will..."

"Do you believe you are walking into a trap?!"

Neither of them retreated an inch. Nero half-knelt on the ground, breathing rapidly, and gave his own answer: "I'm not going alone."

"Who else could it be?"

Credo leaned forward, pushing his sword hard.

In other words, the Yama Sword is a legendary weapon. If it were a normal katana, it would have broken in such a confrontation.

Nero was silent for a moment, and finally uttered the name.

"It's Dante, the Dante you know."

"Dante, you mean?"

The pressure on the blade lessened. Nero just thought Credo had accepted Nero's explanation when he heard his doubtful voice:

"Isn't he still in that faithless country on the continent across the sea?"

"?!"

what?
Dante didn't come?
This shocking news caused Nero's hand, which held the sword, to tremble slightly. This tremor caused Durandal and Yama's sword to miss each other by a fraction of a second. Credo had no time to retract his force, and his sword pierced Nero's abdomen.

"Wait?! Nero?!"

Nero's demonic transformation was lifted, and he regained his beautiful golden hair and azure eyes. Credo also panicked and transformed back into human form, but he didn't dare to draw his sword, fearing that he would cause more harm to Nero.

"Ahem, I'm fine."

Nero held out his hand to signal Credo not to panic. Although a wound of this magnitude was somewhat painful, Nero's physique would allow him to recover quickly. The question now was—why hadn't Dante come?
The story begins at the Demon Sword Festival when Nero is sixteen years old. At this festival, Dante will appear to assassinate the Pope, and Tracy comes some time in advance to gather intelligence.

So, how long until the festival starts?
There was no need to ask Credo, as Nero, who had been preparing for the festival for half a year, immediately had the answer in his mind.

One month.

There is still a month until Dante's first appearance in the game.

(End of this chapter)